


The Other Side of the Tracks

by ClockworkKeaton



Category: Splatoon
Genre: F/F, Femslash, No Lesbians Die, Slice of Life, Useless Lesbians
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-23
Updated: 2018-07-23
Packaged: 2019-06-15 04:45:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,084
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15405267
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ClockworkKeaton/pseuds/ClockworkKeaton
Summary: Agent 8 and Agent 4 exchange thoughts on Octoling society.





	The Other Side of the Tracks

**Author's Note:**

> HELLO yes, a second oneshot. I wanted an excuse to talk about my headcanons on Octarian romance and here they are! I hope you all enjoy.

Patrol was... boring.

Four sighs, bright amber eyes scanning the endless scenery of the canyon for anything that might be of interest. Nothing. Nothing, nothing,  _nothing._ Ever since the third time Inkopolis was saved ( yes,  _three times_ , for the love of God ) things had quieted down considerably and the pace of agent work had slowed to a crawl. Enemy Octarians were rarer and rarer to spot near the border and hostile Octolings even rarer. That was probably a good thing, considering the change in political climate in Inkopolis recently, but it left for quiet afternoons.

Especially with Three out of town looking into the Tartar situation further. Who the hell was Four supposed to bother? Eight? That was like trying to tease a brick wall half the time.

"Hey, Eight." Four yawns, reclining on her outpost perch as she glances below at the Octoling pacing the perimeter below. Even from this angle she can see the slight perk of Eight's long ears and the way the pupils of her soft, sterling eyes narrow just slightly at the sudden sound of her voice. Funny how the rookie takes her job so much more seriously than the 'veteran'.

"Hm? Is something wrong?"

"Nah," Four shakes her head, sitting up a bit. "I was just thinking, you're from around here ain'tcha?"

Eight considers the question for a moment before allowing a brief shake of her head.

"Octo Valley." She corrects. "I've only ever been here for agent work, admittedly. I coudn't say I'm any more familiar with this place than you are."

Not that Eight was familiar with much these days--- aside from the memories she reclaimed in the underground, there was still so many empty gaps to fill in about her personal life that she wonders if she could even be considered that same girl. Sometimes she isn't sure if that's a bad thing or not. On one hand, it made adjusting to an entirely new life that much easier, with nothing left behind to worry about casting away in favor of the beautiful new home that was Inkopolis.

On the other hand? How much could she have left behind that she'd never truly remember? 

"Oh. Sorry, must've mixed 'em up." Four yawns again, this time pausing to rub tiredly at her eyes. "D'you ever miss it though? It must be pretty hard leaving home."

Three might interject and tell Four that's  _stupid_ considering the circumstances, but Eight can't help but feel she's right in a way. Rebellion never came easy, and neither did casting away the only life you ever had. Being one of the first turncoats in a revolution was equally lonesome and scary. 

"Sometimes, I guess." She muses as she leans against the support beams of Four's tower. "It's more of.... a sense of nostalgia. Craving something familiar and comforting as you grow older, maybe. Octarian life was a lot different though, and I can't say I always miss that."

 _The place was a bit of a dump._ Eight bites that thought back, instead offering a soft sigh. Octo Valley was little more than dangerous and unstable ruins these days, littered with rubble and broken machinery and the shambles of whatever civilization came before them. While Inkopolis was the capital of fun and color, Eight's own home was an endless maze of fighting and scavenging and hunting for what food she could manage and it seemed that everyone was always struggling just to make it by. It was a harsh and rugged life, really.

"I kinda figured it must be." Four muses. "What was it like there? Er... sorry, if I'm getting way too nosy. You're just the only person I can really ask about this stuff and Three totally wouldn't let me if she was here."

_Plus it makes this mission totally less mind-numblingly boring._

"You're fine." Eight shakes her head. "It's just not much worth hearing about, I suppose. Most people get a little uncomfortable when I go into too much detail... even if it wasn't so unpleasant in some regards, it is a very different way of thinking to wrap your head around and I can understand where it's somewhat offputting to anyone who can't."

There's a low, brief hum on her end. 

"Well... it was always very cold there, for one. Being surrounded by all that water and all those mountains brought in a lot of sea breezes and chilly weather meant intense winters and troublesome nights. The Octarian uniform doesn't do much in terms of heat either." She wrinkles her nose in distaste. "The higher peaks of the mountains are beautiful at sunset and sunrise though. It was always something I loved a lot."

The delicate light that fell over the wreckage of the world made it look almost tragically beautiful, peaceful and somber like the graveyard it felt like at times. It was in those moments it felt less like a warzone and she felt less like a living weapon patrolling it.

"Where did you stay? Like, your house?" Four asks. 

"Oh, I didn't really have much of one." Eight shrugs in response. "I mean, we all had designated sleeping areas back at the base but they were more or less individual rooms and we hardly ever had a reason to use them. Most of the time we'd be stationed somewhere else for weeks or months, so it was a lot more common to be... nomadic, I suppose? I spent most of my time staying in caves and makeshift camps."

"Geez. Must be hard to ask a girl out to dinner like  _that."_

Eight can't help the noise she makes, something between a snort and a laugh of amusement. For as serious and solemn as Three could be, her protege was decidedly not cut from the same cloth.

"Well," Eight giggles, offering a shake of her head. "I wouldn't say that 'dating' was the same for us as it is for Inklings. Not to sound generalizing, but you  _are_ a much more social and affectionate bunch than we are by nature. "

"There you go with that again." Four groans. "You're always saying weird, confusing stuff like that. I mean, dating is dating, right? You buy her dinner, you kiss her on the cheek, bam. I don't see how it can get a lot more complicated than that, Eight. The quest to score is written in a universal language!"

More laughing, this time from the both of them. Even Four can't take herself seriously with a spiel like that.

"Not when your species doesn't raise it's young and you don't even need a partner to reproduce." Her words are picked far more  _clinically_ than they would be with Three if for nothing else than to preemptively stop Four's crass sense of humor. "From what I can tell, Inkling couples serve a much different purpose than Octoling ones."

"Hey, we do a lot more than just-"

" _Not that."_ Eight groans. "I mean in the sense that it seems more.... emotionally inclined I suppose? Inklings seem to be very community driven and social, so it makes sense that your relationships would be more about that aspect of it."

Four considers this for a moment before offering a tentative nod. From the sounds of things, Octarians had a very individualistic lifestyle and she can imagine that it probably made it a little harder to grow close with one another when you basically lived as a hermit on the nearby cliff in solitude.

"Sooo... Octolings  _don't_ date then?"

"Nah, I wouldn't say that." She shakes her head. "It's just a lot less common in my experience. If two Octolings had the same general territory, it's not completely unheard of for them to form something of a... hm.... a combat pair might be a good way to phrase it? It's more along the lines of survival driven co-dependence. Strong fighters will gravitate towards other strong fighters in hopes of taking care of one another and living longer than they would alone. Twice the food, twice the strength, twice the ability to build and move shelter. Affection is less about touching and feeling and more about protecting and nurturing one another."

The Inkling considers this for a moment before making a decidedly sour face.

"Are you telling me that those groups of four that used to ambush me were just a pack of lesbians?"

"Maybe." Eight laughs, cheeks flushed red with amusement. "It's usually just two, since territory-based aggression is totally a thing and jealousy can be pretty bad but... I can definitely see a group of Octolings sticking together like that if they felt comfortable with it. They'd probably be a much stronger force to reckon with too."

She's not sure if  _she_ would ever be able to handle a situation like that, but that's hardly worth mentioning. 

"How is territory even a thing when you're all on the same side?" Four snorts. "It seems kinda counterproductive to run off troops for your own army just 'cos you don't like them camping out in your forest. I mean, ten girlfriends is stronger than one."

"Yes, well... by nature of design, it's pretty common for Octolings to get a little possessive of the partners they have. It's a sense of safety and security, so a lot of times it leads to things like challenging the other's rivals in combat to impress them or flashy shows of strength or ability. The in-fighting isn't necessarily  _terrible_ but it does lead to a lot of recklessness. Think of it like... like sparring in a way. Nobody gets seriously hurt, but you may end up humiliated if someone tries to up-show you." 

Some part of her can't help but think to Four's own headstrong and clueless behavior, how prone she is to showing off or doing something stupid trying to look 'fresh'. Not exactly a dissimilar concept when you really thought about it.

"No wonder you like Three then. All of that sounds exactly like how  _you two_ act."

Four's comment catches her off-guard and as much is obvious by the rush of color in her face and ears. Was that really the impression they gave off? Somehow it felt more embarrassing than the several times they've been mistaken for a couple by Inkling standards, more likely than not because of the intimate undertones and easily understood context for her. Eight may not understand kissing or holding hands that well just yet but she certainly understood the gravity of placing your life in someone's care.

And really... was Four wrong? They fought together, they trained together, they even stayed in the same home on occassion when one was doing particularly rough and needed the support they couldn't get from anyone else. As much as she wanted to protest her life wasn't  _that_ entwined with Three's, it really truly was and she felt exponentially safer in the hands of her senior than in anyone else's. A bit ironic considering their rocky start and the several concussions that followed, but if Eight could count on anyone to look out for her well-being it was certainly Three.

"W-Well, n-no, it's not like  _t-that,_ it's just--"

"Bahaha, it totally is!" Four declares loudly, rocking back and forth in her seat. "Right down to the angry flirting! I mean, did you see that look she gave that dude at Crusty's the other day when he asked for your number? The chick told him you didn't have a phone  _WHILE_ you were texting. And I bet all my sea snails she would'a clobbered him for it if they ran into each other out on the turf."

Embarrassing. God, this was  _mortifyingly_ embarrassing.

"F-Four." Eight begins, taking a slow and steady breath. "She's just.... s-she's just being nice!"

"Yeah, but Three doesn't even know how to be nice."

Fair point. 

Eight simply huffs, turning her back to the younger girl still giggling and jeering from her spot on the look-out in resolution to  _ignore_ her for the rest of this shift. Maybe a punishment like that would be more meaningful if it wasn't the last half-hour stretch, but she was determined nonetheless. 

At least, until she hears the familiar ringtone of her teammates phone followed by a, "Yello--? Oh! Heya Three! Yeah, everything's fine here, Eight's still in one piece. Boring as heck though, honestly. Oh man, guess what I learned today though!"

Never has Four seen a girl climb a ladder quite as fast and never has she hit the ground quite as quickly.


End file.
